CODE: Kronos - Enhanced Edition
by Vickie1
Summary: It came in the email. It left her with creeps but once she opened it, Claire Redfield not only discovered a cry for help on the beautiful private island, Cape Inacio but more secrets than she bargained for under the white sand. The past isn't dead. It's not even the past. (Revamp of original fic, details inside)


**CODE: Kronos - Enhanced Edition**

(A revamp of the original fic)

Summary: It came in the email. It left her with creeps but once she opened it, Claire Redfield not only discovered a cry for help on the beautiful private island, Cape Inacio but more secrets than she bargained for under the white sand. Instead of following to code this time, she rushes over with three close allies against the clock to save over 11,000 people from a possible outbreak - even turning to new ones she least expected to find and a friend she thought was dead. But in this game of chess, it's going to force Claire to go back through her closet of skeletons.

The past isn't dead. It's not even the past.

* * *

 **PROLOGUE**

 _28 May 2014, 7:04 P.M._

 _Weston City, USA_

IT WAS OFFICIAL.

The day finally came when the stickups would put their hands down - Claire Redfield was asking for it. The longer she headbutted into that one business, the more she ignored the warnings, it was bound to happen.

It didn't feel right. She was fine. There was nothing wrong with her. And this was what she got: a two-week suspension!

Despite her best effort at deluding herself all that, she marched right into her flat and slammed the door shut behind her.

 _BANG!_

It didn't matter to her if that would uprise the neighbors. She was fuming even after having stormed out of the TerraSave Headquarters. Now Claire wanted to find something to just throw. The next best thing she could do was pitch whatever she had in her hands right at the furniture.

The words still stung in her head.

* * *

0200 hours ago.

"You wanted to see me, Sir?"

A disappointed sigh escaped the director's lips. "Redfield, sit down."

It was in the late afternoon when she got the unexpected call to his office. Not the first but she didn't have a reason to feel anxious about it. Claire had a perfect record, followed protocol to the book. Heck, Hopkins has praised her numerous times, twice highly for handling the Harvardville incident and the one regarding the kidnapping of their own agents, including herself. There was nothing that raised a red flag for her.

No. There was one little thing. Because recently, something she brought back from her last mission made a crack in the door to her closet of skeletons.

That little gap attracted her back like a moth to a flame, pulling at the old yearning she had.

And she was found out, hands burnt at being too close.

"Sure, Sir." Claire managed the most brightly casual smile she could give. In retrospect, it might have been a bad idea. "What did you want–"

"I'll cut to the chase. I've had reports that you've been making frequent requests to Infosec."

Her body tensed and she bit her lip. It was a reflex she absentmindedly did. Hopkins could clearly see it and his notion was correct. Likewise, Claire could see he wished it wasn't.

"Why?"

She tried to relax.

"I was looking up on an old case. Double-checking."

"Really? Well, I've checked too and you're not working on any cases that need the information division at Quantico."

Again, the twitch in her body. This time, she couldn't walk out of it.

So she pushed. "Is there something wrong with that?" she scoffed. Professionally, of course. "You've never had much of a problem with me and adding more cases on my desk, Director."

He hunched his eyebrows tighter. So she was going to play that game, that was what Claire could read in his face. "Have you seen the psychologist yet-"

"I'm fine." She rose her tone, something she had never done to the Director. And instead of holding her patience, she let it tinkle out. "Just spit it out. Was it someone from Infosec having a problem with how I use it?"

"Nobody's accusing you but your behavior is evidence enough."

"You're assuming. I'm perfectly fine in the head. I'm just doing what I've always done."

Hopkins shook his head disappointedly. He didn't want to do this but she left him no choice. One hand slid a folder across his desk, in the middle.

"What's this about Rockfort Island?"

Her heart shot up into her throat.

Her fingers wrapped into shaking fists. Dammit, what was she supposed to do now? And the longer she held in her rebuttal, the more convinced Hopkins was.

"Hopkins, I can explain-"

Surprisingly, instead of that stereotype boss shout and a terrifying hurl of the folder to the floor, Hopkins heaved a heavy sigh.

"Enough. You've done a lot for TerraSave. But you also can't be using it for personal gain."

Why not? It was just one time. **One fucking time.**

Yes, it was a rookie mistake. She should have been more careful with getting that information. But in the last few weeks, she was getting desperate. All because a news broadcast surfaced on TV three months ago. She thought it was from a couple of weeks under the intense sun. That she was delirious when she saw that one figure in the background for just a split second.

Yasmin saw him too. Yasmin was the one who first spotted him!

After she returned back to USA, next to that box...it rekindled back a very old hope she had long ago and moved on. And once she crept past the door into her closet of skeletons, there was no getting out. She dug deeper to find out its legitimacy through the Infosec, only to find dead ends.

Call it a defense mechanism to deal with it. Or a delusional pledge to getting to the bottom of it. Once and for all. Claire owed it to Yasmin for everything, for the motivation to keep searching again.

She had to. Or else she was going to finally scream and break down. And with each cul-de-sac she found killing that renewed hope, it was making her more frantic. Becoming uncharacteristically tense that even her colleagues noticed.

Her stiff stance drew out another sigh from the Director. "I can't allow you to break anymore tape. This is your own reputation on the line."

 _No, no, no!_ Don't take away her only means!

"Sir, look. Give me a chance-"

"Enough!" There it was. The shout she expected but not as over-the-top as she had thought. Hopkins calmed down in his seat, but his stern eyes stayed dead on her. "You're suspended without pay. Two weeks."

She couldn't believe her ears. Suspension?!

"Sir-!"

"Claire." Hopkins had rarely spoken to her on a first-name basis. "It's been a rough few months. Take it as a vacation," he stated both firmly and concernedly. "I mean it."

She wanted to protest. Open up that bottle of emotions she had been keeping in as an agent. But the full weight of the conversation had fully her the reality. She had been turning away from it the moment she stepped into his office.

She had overstepped her boundary.

Hopkins could easily read the soured expression on her face, no matter how hard she tried to hide it. He knew her well enough, one of his best agents. But he also didn't want to lose another.

"I know why you broke the rules this one time, Claire… But you have to stop chasing a ghost."

* * *

And thus was the end of her twenty-minute-long heated story. She couldn't handle the frustration anymore that after she left, she aimlessly drove on her motorbike to let go of the steam. Another hour after that, she finally decided to return home. Because of the overcast.

There was nowhere for her to go. Just...home. In the cold, quiet living room filled with dribbling shadows and the tapping of raindrops.

So this was what it was like to lose it… She wondered how Leon had to deal with it. Or her brother. Grit their teeth tight and bear through it? Find another way around it?

For once, Claire wished she had that possibility dropped on her lap.

She peeked over to her answering machine. A light - so she got a message or two before she arrived. Better than nothing if she wanted something to take her mind off the whole shebang.

 _Beep!_

" _Hey, Claire._ "

That familiar voice immediately dulled down her internal conflict. A small smile crept across her face.

" _It's Moria. Just...sending this voice message, checking to see if you're alright. Even if we just saw each other this morning… Um… Natalia came by with Dad this afternoon. We had steak dinner. At that_ joint _you told me about… Ok, we didn't have steak dinner. We got fish instead._ "

Her smile widened a bit more. It was all too suspicious and out of character for Moria. Like she was trying too hard.

" _Sooo… I know I'm sounding like an awful jerk. Making this phone call out of the blues… There's a reason for it… Dad told me. About, you know, your trip to Iraq?_ "

Claire grimaced. Well, great. Just how big-mouthed was Chris being? Still, it was inevitable.

Instead of accepting the extra logs make the fires grow bigger, she settled down on her sofa. Take it all in from a good friend.

" _I just learned about it today. After what happened to you at HQ. Sorry. One thing led to another and... I-I didn't ask for the full story. Well, even Dad doesn't know. So...do_ n't _get mad at him. At me too._ "

Moria was never good with these kinds of things. Claire couldn't blame her.

" _...Look, alright. I'm not good at this stuff. " Yup. Claire almost wondered if she had read her mind somehow. " I just...wanna say I'm here. If you need someone to talk to…. Just the girls, having a_ chit chat _. At the firing range._ "

She chuckled. That personality of hers, reminded her of another quite like Moria.

Then she felt it. That one battered heartstring pulled. Again. She sunk deeper into her sofa, breathing in and out to dull out an old sorrow.

" _Yeah… Just call me. I'm here. " There was a still silence hanging for a minute. Then a cough as if to work up the courage again. " Let's go to the_ diner _tomorrow. You were right. The fries were good… Night, Claire._ "

 _Beep!_

There was nothing but the rain.

The metrical tapping was surprisingly soothing. When was the last time that she lost her cool? Claire heaved out a tired sigh at the annoying knot in her stomach. She never liked worrying others with her own ordeals. It just made her feel worse.

Another second passed and she spoke to herself, "Well... It could have been worse. I could have been fired…"

She didn't know why she talked to herself. But being alone in the apartment, it was a little irritating to her. Then again, she rarely stayed home. Most of her things were still in boxes ever since she moved to Weston a couple of years ago. What classified as 'home' was pretty much atTerraSave. She didn't even have a hobby to look forward to. Maybe some light reading… Ok. That was a lie. It was just reading files from work.

Claire rolled over to the digital clock sitting on a side table. Should she call? At this hour? No, no. One, Chris was probably out on patrol. Again. Two, it'd only add more worry on him. Chris could read her like a book, even if through the phone lines. He'd figure out her suspension. After all, he immediately dropped everything and hopped onto the nearest plane to Afghanistan to continue on with her investigation in her place. Well, more like a group of tough guys from a religious, bioterrorist organization hurt his baby sister and he was off to give them one-two.

That wasn't a good idea, the more she thought about it. Tension was already rocky between the USA and Iraq to begin with. Added with the fact that relationships were greatly strained since the Africa incident - some reminiscences of the Majini straining into Egypt. Another additional fact that the news broke out, saying the one responsible behind it was _that person_ \- an 'American' and a good enough excuse for the Rasuls to put the blame and fear on one country.

Well, Chris would be alright. She still kept tags with BSAA. Of course, he did disappear. Twice. The second time, there was a period that the siblings lost contact and out of the blues, he called her via video mail - rugged, worn but back on his feet. That completely shocked her.

Claire almost wanted to call him… What she was dealing right now was in a way similar to what he tried looking for at the bottom of a bottle.

Again, she resisted the urge. Besides, she was a big girl. If he could get out of zombie-infested places and alcoholism, then she could handle this suspension like a mature woman.

Two weeks…

She glanced around. Maybe it was time to arrange her apartment. At least, look like a better excuse of a home. It was a nice place, the one thing she liked about it was the view of the city. Maybe even look in taking care of a pet. Then she thought a second time - she couldn't bear the idea of leaving it to starve, considering how often she had to cross states.

"Ugh…" she purposely exhaled out. The beat of the rain entwined with the silence was getting on her nerve now. As an effort to fight against the dullness, she turned on the TV. She needed noise. Anything.

"-this is Jade Zhang, reporting on the coast of El Delmor," said the Asian spokeswoman, walking down a quiet street opened with the view of the ocean behind. "Over 4,700 miles from here is the famous private island, Cape Inacio. Discovered in 1971 by Chairman Silas I. Stavros, Founder of HELIX Foundations, it became the birthplace for many of the company's revolutionary pharmaceutical assets and groundbreaking medical research."

The news showed an island surrounded by seawater, from a view stationed on a ship. On the side, photos of a livid, bustling town were displayed.

"Cape Inacio's lush tropical beauty offers not only natural herbs and mineral resources but also many natural wonders. Until two decades ago, much of the island was wild and primitive, untouched by the modern world. Because of the near isolation from any neighboring continents, it became Stavros' dream to establish a friendly interracial and international community. That it would be "everyone's home" for his employees and their families to feel safe, happy and secured. It's also a paradise for sportsmen with world-class rock climbing, fishing, dirt-biking, sailing and kayaking.

Of course, unless you're a HELIX employee, no one can head over there for sunshine and the sea. For company protection policy, Vice President Vasquez and Mayor Castro have declined any sorts of visits from outside, including an interview from us. This is because of a reported break-in to one of their facilities fourteen years ago-"

And now it was getting all monotonous. It wasn't anything new to her - HELIX Foundations, a powerful conglomerate having taken the lead ever since TRICELL's fall and also prominent in the Federation of Pharmaceutical Companies. Particularly a common name across the globe with a long list - provider of more than a third of the world's diversified pharmaceuticals, an innovator of medical and prosthetic inventions that have benefited hospitals, investigation units, every healthcare organization over the last three decades, an idealist of the medical world– on and on. The most recent news was HELIX dwelling deeper into neural networks, artificial intelligence and neuroprosthetics to advance the medical science while on the side, they were collaborating over in Iraq with generous donations and supplies for the people.

Unknown to Claire, something was shifting through her wi-fi. Phasing in like a ghost and finding its way into one electronic left charging on her kitchen counter.

She was all too numbed by the news, she didn't even notice the screen of her laptop simmer and blink.

"-Vasquez announced the revealing of their latest development by the end of the month. Nothing has been said as of yet but he assures us it will change the world. Experts presume it could be related to their research on neurology-"

Claire frowned. HELIX's squeaky clean reputation was more influential than the indicted and destroyed Umbrella. But...there was always that inkling feeling Claire had once she heard the phrase "latest development". But she always had that towards any pharmaceutical company.

She sighed. She was doing it again. "...Hopkins was right. I need a break."

Claire buckled up from her seat. What could she do for two weeks?

Some people would suggest to her to go to a tropical beach with those drinks and tiny umbrellas on it. Jill would suggest the same thing Moria did.

Truthfully, Claire had for a long time, avoided going for the beach. Anywhere tropical and relaxing. It just seemed like...it would be insulting. Not to herself but...

Ok. So the firing range it was.

 _Wow, Claire,_ she thought to herself. _You really have fallen rock-bottom that you can't even think of another place for pastime._

She then spied her lonely laptop. Might as well check emails, order takeout and sleep early. She could figure out her plan for tomorrow. Tomorrow.

Claire turned the sleep mode off and hit a few keys while pulling out a can she found in her nearly-empty fridge. Ok, need to stock up the fridge for two weeks.

The first three emails that caught her eyes were from her co-workers over at Iraq. She opened them and read line after line - no news yet of any viral outbreak but there had been a few outburst and blood spilt. Still, what the emails had were a small, brighter side of the war. Attached were photos: of TerraSave members helping the citizens, smiling rescued orphans, and Muslim helpers working together with the distribution of food, clothing, blankets, and medicine.

Yeah… TerraSave were over there, cooperating with BSAA. And she was not. Next week, Moria would be helping out too.

Oh, did Barry brew up a storm a couple of days ago.

The fourth, a protected email, made her smile happily. Sherry. From the contents she read, it seemed like Sherry was doing alright - it has been a bit quiet since Leon left for his next mission. Admittedly, she missed his usual uptight self. Note, she should go visit her tomorrow to entertain her. Division of Security Operations was located right in the heart of Weston and Sherry was one of the reasons why Claire moved here anyway.

And then there was second 'first' email.

It just arrived in her inbox just as she was done reading Sherry's email. Right from the get-go, she found it a bit unusual. She didn't recognize the address. Actually, she couldn't recognize the email service at all. Was it a new one?

More importantly was the title. "Important. Please Read."

Spam. Had to be spam. Though, why didn't it go into the spam box in the first place?

Her gut feeling was pricking at her. An anonymous, serious-looking email…

Ok, if this turned out to be a worm, she was going to devote her suspension time searching for the asshole sender.

She opened it.

Ok. She wasn't too sure to feel relieved or upset. The mysterious email was filled with jumbled symbols and large caps. An encrypted email. So she deleted it. At least it wasn't anything of a loss-

Another email appeared, stopping her from leaving her laptop.

Then another one.

And another.

And another.

Suddenly, her firewall notification was screaming out the red alerts. Oh, that couldn't be good.

In a fit of panic, her fingers smashed on the keys. Nothing was working. And the inbox was filling up to the hundred digits. So the email did have a trojan horse! The techs would kill her if they ever found out the latest model provided by TerraSave was infected with a virus!

"Stop it," she breathed. "Stop it. Stop it!"

As suddenly as she hollered with a fist banged on the table, the emails stopped.

Three seconds of peace.

A software window suddenly opened up, taking over the screen. Claire nearly jolted back from fright - not because of that but because of what was shown.

It was a video feed from the looks of it but the background was like something from a virtual game. Numbers and letters going up and down on a black shapeless void.

Someone started back at her.

Its face was half white and half turquoise blue, meeting right down in the middle - with nothing but one white eye on the blue side and a strange wiggly line as a mouth, moving and pulsing like a breath. Like a masquerade face mask of a joker with neither a smile nor frown. It was a virtually ethereal being she had never seen before. The hood of its jacket was ominously flowing behind its medium-length hair gelled up like waving spikes. Across the skin, she could barely make out lines of binaries and matrices.

The stranger tilted his head. She could only guess it was a guy. Then as if peering into a peephole, its one hollow eye glanced closer, directly at her.

" _Read the email, Redfield._ "

The mouth vibrated like a soundwave played. Even the robotic and yet casual-sounding voice gave her chills. She could have sworn she muted her laptop before. And back up, how the hell did this 'thing' know her last name?

Was this one of those rickety AI avatars she heard about? But this one moved so fluidly like a human, glinting inquisitively like a child. It was almost like she was meeting a real person.

" _Please read it._ "

Those words seemed to carry a certain weight that it almost made Claire feel pitiful. Which was odd. Zombies, sure, she had dealt with a number of all sorts in the years since Raccoon City. Dealing with an AI was just strange to her.

The window closed shut. The 'person' was gone and everything was normal on the screen. Like the computer virus was never there to begin with.

Even her inbox was back to normal. All the repeated emails were gone, except for one. But this time, the last email opened up on its own. A password UI appeared, the dots easily being typed in without her wary fingers even touching the keyboard. At command, the cryptic symbols morphed into plain English.

It was as if her computer got possessed. No one back in HQ was going to believe this. Hell, what kind of hacking tool was this?!

Swallowing up her nervousness, Claire pulled a chair to her and took a closer look. There was nothing in the contents other than attachments: one audio file, one compressed folder and one jpeg. One name caught her eye.

Cape Inacio.

She sent a quick glance at the TV. That was just on the news…

"Too convenient…." But she opened the folder anyway.

Documents of all sorts spewed out onto her desktop, all tagged with a familiar company logo. Two identical hexagon shapes - one on top of the other with the lines forming an X, at the end of the four bold golden letters.

HELIX Foundations.

"Oh great," she groaned as she scrolled down one document to a zoomed in picture of crudely-distorted organism agents. "Another one…"

The biological structures were a dead giveaway.

A virus.

There wasn't much in the documents to go by - only numbers and statements that linked between the company and Cape Inacio. But Claire ran her fingers through her hair at the shocking revelation. Just how many corrupted companies wanted to unleash a repeat of Raccoon City again?!

Then what that spokeswoman said. About the announcement of the 'new, upcoming, development'?

She felt chills down her spine. What was HELIX planning? No, a more pressing question was why was she given this? All of this seemed to scream, "trap".

She opened the audio log.

Nothing but soft static for the first few seconds. There were other sounds - shuffling, pacing. Like someone was preparing a speech but their mouth was tied.

A deep breath. A couple of nervous coughs. Then a sigh. Sounded like a woman.

"..My name is Iria McLenlan. Head Director of Thesesus Research Center…"

Silence for two more seconds. Followed by a groan.

"Screw formality," the voice whispered out of irritation. Her tone refuted away the unsteady seriousness to a more slightly relaxed one. "I'll cut it short. At the end of this month, a virus called the Kronos Virus will be finished. And yes... a global outbreak should be the biggest concern but...there's probably going to be a much smaller one...

You've heard of Cape Inacio. It's a pretty picture on the news. Over 9,000 people live here, exactly where the virus is being developed. Out of that, 3,891 employees work in this facility - scientists, security, staff, doctors. All because if we didn't cooperate...our families would be exterminated… Additionally, 1,280 patients were brought here. For the purpose of "getting treatment". Making a total of 11,183."

Claire's mouth gaped open. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"You can imagine where I'm going with this… Once HELIX gets their hands on that variant...we're expendable. They control everything and we have no way of contacting anyone outside without tripping their security. How this information got to you, it's thanks to someone really good with computers."

A pause hung steadily. This woman was struggling.

"I'm not going to give those bastards the privilege. We're not going down without a fight. If we have to, then we'll force our way off this island. All of us… But… I'm also afraid this plan's going to fail. So I need a backup plan. And you're my backup."

Claire tilted back her head in surprise. She wasn't sure about feeling 'obliged' to be of aid. What could she do?

"The folder has everything you need. Not enough information to take down HELIX but enough to warrant a rescue. I want you to get whatever help possible. Anything before the deadline. In case...in case we fail and there's no one else to save our families."

Claire's shoulders suddenly felt heavy from the responsibility she was being given. What was worse, she was taken off work. If it was possible, she would have immediately jumped the gun.

 _No, stop thinking like that, Claire. You're not the same person in the past._ She'd just have to send the email to TerraSave-

"And…" the voice continued with a sense of determination. "If 11,000 people isn't a good enough reason, then I can give you another, Miss Redfield."

Wait. How did she-

"Steve is still alive."

Her heart stopped.

 _No…_

 _That's a lie._

"He told me about you."

She shook her head. "Shut up…"

"That's how I know."

"Shut up!" Claire hissed, jumping off her seat. "...Steve's dead!"

He's been dead for years.

"I've seen the videos from Rockfort Island and Antarctica. I know what happened there."

 _That doesn't mean you know him! This is a trick!_ One of those ruses to capture a TerraSave agent. Just like in 2011 but only specifically her. It was as if Claire was bring pried, being boiled inside. If this woman was right here, she'd suckerpunch her.

Another moment of silence strained from the audio. Like it was taunting her. But instead of a villain driving the nail further into her wound, the voice continued. Tired.

"I know… I know… It's hard to believe it. All of it. I don't blame you… Red hair, a bit of a hothead. But he's also bright. Well, if he isn't leaping off before he thinks. Always has to prove a point he doesn't need to rely on others, even me."

The way the woman spoke, it was something like a mother talking about a misbehaved child. That settled down Claire's temper just a bit, bewilderment taking over.

"But he has a good heart, knows who to trust, looks out for others. Has quite an appetite too." The woman softly giggled, her laughter ending with a sad ring. "I think...I wouldn't have gotten this far if it wasn't for Kiddo. I owe a lot to him. A lot of people owe him just for being here."

It was all too convincing. So this woman was in debt to Steve? No, she wasn't going to be toyed with, Claire said to herself.

If it wasn't for the next sentences.

"He hasn't stopped thinking about you. You're all that he talks about. Valkyrie, he calls you."

...Yeah… He would say that.

"He trusts you. That's good enough for me. That's why this message is to you. And if you come just for him, that's good too. He deserves to be off this island… It's a better reason than helping out strangers, right?"

Again, a longer pause this time. But Claire could hear the sounds. She was struggling, trying to keep her cool as best as possible.

No. She was crying, short breaths seeping out of clenched teeth.

"Miss Redfield…. I don't care about this virus or reputation. I've done things I'm not proud of. So did many of my coworkers. I've been through hell. And I would gladly do it again if it means protecting him and my family from those corporate dogs…. We never asked for this. We didn't drag our loved ones here...to die with us…"

A few quick sniffles escaped out. All her self-control had worn down to the last single thread.

"S-Send help… P-Please…"

For a minute, Claire listened. It was soft, like the director had pushed away so it wouldn't be recorded. She had finally brokem out in tears.

No way this could be an act. It went on too long for another two minutes, where the woman eventually calmed down. Claire's gut feeling pinched again. This was a director, passing valuable information to a complete strange. Which meant she broke a lot of tape to send the email.

Just like Claire did in HQ.

"...'There is not a wise man without fault. We all have got our weaknesses'," she heard the voice quote. "It's something my father once told me… I wish I could have been meeting you in person instead of an audio file. You sound like a tremendous lady to Steve. He's really smitten with you..."

Claire swallowed a lump suddenly in her throat. Wait, what did Steve tell her? No, what? Was he still…

 _Stop, Claire. Don't believe it yet. Not until you see it with your own eyes._

"Thank you." That was the last thing the audio ended with, leaving Claire to stare laboriously at the screen.

She thought long and hard.

It has been sixteen years since she heard that name. Seen that man in the flesh. Oh, she could barely remember his voice but yeah, just as the woman said, he was indeed a hothead. If she had gotten this message sixteen years ago, she would have immediately bolted. Didn't matter the consequences or the other lives on some island - she could have gone straight to him.

She was wiser and patient now. Part of her said this didn't prove anything and Steve was still dead, even if this was the lead she needed. Her TerraSave agent side was telling her lives were at stake and if this virus were to get out, more would follow too. The director passed her a heavy baton to carry.

The rest wanted to be hopeful.

She had almost forgotten about the last attachment. She opened the jpeg.

There… That was the proof she needed.

"Steve…" she cracked.

It was a cropped-out photo from a mobile phone. And there was the green-eyed man she remembered, standing smugly with that familiar grin. Alive. He hasn't changed much other than the length of his hair and his build. It was almost like history had changed and he had never been left back in Antarctica.

Her eyes watered. Just a bit. It was a bit too early to be crying. Not until she met him again, face to face.

Then Claire finally remembered one small dilemma.

As a TerraSave member, she should be contacting HQ and giving them the evidence. Get as much manpower as possible. Contact, the navy, BSAA, every hand on deck to get together for a large-scale operation.

Getting the number quickly wasn't the problem. The problem was she was suspended. Once she gave that info, she would be told to go back home.

She bit her lower lip. "Too personal. Hopkins would say that…"

Her one lead and surely, it was going to be taken away. And she was under a time limit. She couldn't afford to act impatiently on her own feelings when thousands were going to be in peril. Then a billion if this Kronos Virus were to get out. Worst, from what it sounded like over the audio, HELIX planned on destroying every piece of evidence, non-living and living wise. End of the month was only a couple of days away. Too short a timeframe. She doubted any remaining TerraSave agents not assigned to the Iraq mission would be quick enough to hustle at this hour.

However...Claire Redfield was suspended.

She thought about it. She was free to do whatever she wanted.

But she couldn't go in alone. She wasn't her past self anymore.

Whipping out her cell phone, she hit the speeddial while her other free hand went to work, forwarding the email - minus the audio file and photo - to Hopkins.

Click! The line went through.

" _Claire? Hey, what's up?_ "

"Hey. Remember what you said? You're here when I need someone?" she asked, sending one more glance at the picture.

At Steve.

"Wanna go a little vacation?"

* * *

 _28 May 2014, 7:04 P.M._

 _West Koralo, Cape Inacio_

 _Atlantic Ocean_

 _Click, click, click, click!_

He checked. Double-checked. Triple-checked.

Didn't seem like the island's network had found him. The bogus virus he sent out should have distracted them long until his avatar got out of the wide world's cyberspace.

Technology today was grand, infinite. The list of things he had done, oooh boy, would his aunt be pissed off. It was because out in the world, there were so many who think their locks were enough on their doors. They underestimated that.

But inside the heavy protection of the island's cyber security, it was a completely different place. The number of tripwires, traps and beacons he had to avoid detection. He couldn't afford to get found.

Still, at least he got to meet this Claire person.

Ok, meet was a poor choice of word. His little mission was to just drop the email into her inbox under his fifteen-minute window. And he was cutting it reaaal close when this lady went to delete the first one. No choice but to urge her to read the second email before he had to cut off the connection. He wasn't sure if that was enough but he could only hope. Because the way he was explained vaguely, it sounded like a serious deal.

 _Whatever you do, don't let HELIX catch you._

It was a bizarre request. But seeing her at the hospital was all bizarre. He glanced down at the name in green marker on his arm cast, where she had slipped the sd card into. The warning came to him via SMS after she left - her hidden cipher that unless you were part of the family, you wouldn't be able to decode it. Like how he and his sister used to play years ago...

"Aunt Iria, what did you get yourself in?"

He curled his fingers tightly. Out of curiosity and a bit of worry, he opened up the folder.

"...What?" He swallowed. Hang on. Bioweapon?

He was about to play the audio-

 _Knock, knock, knock!_

He froze, fingers tense on the mouse as he reeled back. It came from the front, the door swinging open.

 _No… How did they find out?!_

"Hey, Randy. You're home?"

He immediately relaxed but hastily shut off the old laptop and shoved it under his bed. Hurrying onto his feet, he charged right out just as his red-haired visitor walked into the hallway. "Heya!"

"Whoa, hey. Where's the fire?"

"Fire? Nothing, nothing," he quickly uttered. "You're here early."

"Uh, did you forget?" His tall friend pointed to the clock. "Hannah thought you've holed yourself up in your room. After what happened last week."

He huffed out a "phsw" at him. "She's always being a worrywart. I'm fine. I...had some assignment to finish up. That's all."

"Uh-huh." There was that look of concern. Most adults would give him that and he didn't really like it. "Look, Randy. What you did back there...it was hella awesome."

Hell, yeah! That was why he liked him so much. He wasn't like the other grown-ups.

"But…tell us if you're in trouble, ok? Even if Doc's been so busy these couple of years, you got me and your sis around."

He fell quiet, with a hesitated nod. "I couldn't let him get away with it… I'm always the one on the receiving end too…"

"Yeah. I've been there too. Though I didn't chute myself with him into a ditch. That's pretty bold of ya."

And rather stupid. He scratched his messy head sheepishly. He was normally the type of guy who went invisible too. And he earned a broken arm for leaving the shadows.

"At least things didn't get worse after that." Then his friend heavily sighed. "Until Hannah went berserk at that bully."

He let out a loud groan. "Please don't remind me…"

"Well. If anything, I think you made a good impression with that girl though."

His cheeks flushed red. "What? No! Sam's just my classmate! And she wouldn't go for a short nerd like me."

"Ah, come on. Chicks dig that, being their knight in shining armor." The redhead gave him a strong pat on the back. "Now come on. We shouldn't keep your sis waiting."

Although that earlier statement had left him in a fumble jumble, he was still happy. Despite the large age gap, the man surprised him with a number of interests he had - mostly games and comics. Even more, he looked up to him like a role model.

He wasn't scared anymore, thinking men in black were going to barge through the front door and take him away. But the redhead, he was one of his aunt's colleagues. A good friend.

His smile faded as he gazed back at his bedroom door. He couldn't shake off the terrible feeling. If his aunt was in trouble, so was his friend. Maybe everyone.

Was that why she specifically told him to send the email to this Claire Redfield? He first thought it was because of the redhead, hearing him talk about that name every now and then.

He couldn't ignore this. Another dive into the web could bring more light. If he had to, maybe create up a cyberstorm to attract those organizations. But he'd have to give it a day or two for the heat in the network to die out-

"Randy, you coming?"

"Yeah, sorry."

The sixteen-year-old teen hurried out the door and into the beautiful, torrid scenery of the island.

* * *

Notes: ...Ahem. Soooo, a funny story. The year I had been writing CODE: Kronos, it became a tough one that I had to drop it entirely. And there had been many times I went to come back to it but somehow lost motivation to continue. Then I was rewatching a Youtuber play RE7 (bless his laughter and screams in that one ahhh) and I was thinking... I should revamp it. To a sorta current 2010s era instead.

At first I wasn't too sure because that would mean a lot of changes like character ages, keeping reference to the previous games, etc. But out of you know, fandom urge, I literally went to write the new prologue and, this was the result. Which, you know, I think it was a good call to do. Some parts in my last fic just felt a bit cheezy. Blegh!

I'm not too sure if I'll keep going after this - mainly because I'm afraid of falling into the common problem I have which is not having a drafted plot ready to guide me. And there's a lot into this, not only enemies, character developments, etc. So I'm working on a draft plot first before I continue. Btw this is stricty gonna be writing like a RE game (well ok I don't know how much corniness I can put in because I normally make plots be realistically and seriously but I can try?) and if you expect this to have romance, it's probably gonna be as minimum as most games are. Really depends on the plot entirely.

ANYHOW, I'll be taking my time on the plot draft and other stuff. But if you really like the prologue and want more, let me know in the comments. And thank you for taking your time reading this.


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